With all this year's organized team activities (OTAs) and mandatory minicamps behind us, the NFL will take its annual month-long break before training camps start rolling out in the second half of July.
Ideally, there won't be much going on -- in terms of NFL news -- during this lull in the action. But for fantasy managers who take their preparation seriously, there is no downtime. That's why the Fantasy Notebook will keep rolling with a position-by-position series on underrated players.
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This week, we're going with Underrated Running Backs. We started with RB2s capable of RB1 production on Monday and followed up with Talented but Risky RBs yesterday. Today, we'll examine a couple of . . .
RBs in New Places With the Talent to Excel
There's no shortage of players who could benefit from their offseason moves. That includes running backs who appear destined to split time as we head into training camp, with opportunities to earn more. As always, circumstances and performance will determine the ultimate outcomes. But identifying those with the talent and potential opportunities to excel can be a path to fantasy success.
Let's check a couple of players who match this archetype.
White's Opportunity and Past Production Have My Attention
As Newsweek's Rowan Fisher-Shotton wrote, "The Washington Commanders had an eventful offseason." While general manager Adam Peters put an emphasis on defense, there were changes on offense as well.
It's not a reach to say fantasy investors should view it as an offensive reset.
David Blough got promoted to offensive coordinator, replacing Kliff Kingsbury, and tight end Chig Okonkwo got a three-year, $27 million deal. Washington also said goodbye to a lot of familiar faces, including Deebo Samuel Sr. and center Tyler Biadasz.
The backfield lost Austin Ekeler and Chris Rodriguez Jr., who both did not re-sign.
To help fill the void, the Commanders signed former Tampa Bay Buccaneer Rachaad White the day after Rodriguez left.
Washington also added former Browns running back Jerome Ford and drafted Penn State's Kaytron Allen in the sixth round of April's draft. With White, Allen, and Ford joining Croskey-Merritt and McNichols, this year's backfield appears to be every bit as -- if not more -- ambiguous than it was last season.
But even if it's the most likely, a timeshare is not the only possible outcome. There is another . . .
White Could Shine
If White earns a more significant role and outperforms expectations, it wouldn't be the first time.
He operated as a feature for the Buccaneers back in 2023 and delivered his best season as a pro, rushing for 990 yards on 272 carries and six touchdowns, with 64 catches for 549 receiving yards and three receiving touchdowns.
He finished that season as fantasy's RB4.
White has played a situational role since. As ESPN's Mike Clay notes, White is fine as a rusher, but he's a standout as a receiver. He's the only back in the NFL with 40-plus catches in each of the past four seasons, and his 89.1 percent career catch rate is easily best in NFL history among players with 100-plus targets.
So it's possible he'll focus on a receiving role in Washington, as well. After all, White is a familiar face for quarterback Jayden Daniels.
The pair first played together at Arizona State in 2020 and 2021. During their final season together in Tempe, White was a dual-threat weapon, recording 1,462 scrimmage yards and 16 total touchdowns.
White and Daniels have maintained a brotherly connection since their college days.
Sorting Out the Possibilities
While we all expect Washington's backfield to be in a timeshare with Croskey-Merritt and White splitting most of the touches, that's not chiseled in stone.
Reports out of OTAs and minicamp were consistently positive, with Fisher-Shotton arguing the player who could make the sneakiest impact in 2026 is White. CBS Sports' Tyler Sullivan also flagged White as a sleeper bargain earlier last week after Dan Quinn praised the running back coming out of OTAs and minicamp. ESPN.com's John Keim also cited White's recent performances.
Their current Average Draft Positions (ADPs) suggest the fantasy hive mind is picking up on the buzz. Croskey-Merritt was consistently the first Commanders back off the board for most of the offseason.
That's changed.
White is now RB39. Croskey-Merritt is RB40. Both are going in Round 9 of early drafts.
But what if one of them earns a more prominent role? And who's the most likely candidate if that happens?
I've seen flashes of what Croskey-Merritt can do.
Exactly two flashes in the form of 20-plus point fantasy scoring. He had only five games with double-digit scoring en route to an 8.5-point-per-game average that ranked 43rd at the position.
I'm more confident in White.
He has had a top-five season and Footballguy Matt Waldman believes White can realistically deliver a top-15 PPR season -- even if the former Buc is sharing the workload.
Here's the bet: White doesn't need to win the job outright to pay off your Round 9 pick.
His receiving role gives him a floor almost no other back at his ADP can match, and his history with Daniels gives him a ceiling that could turn a committee back into a weekly starter.
We've seen the top-five version of White before. In Washington, with the right snaps and the quarterback who already trusts him, we could see it again.
And at a Round 9 price, that's a chance well worth taking.
Ready to Gain(well) in Tampa Bay?
Kenneth Gainwell signed with the Buccaneers following a second-half breakout with Pittsburgh last season. Meanwhile, in Tampa Bay, Bucky Irving missed seven straight games last season with ankle and shoulder injuries -- Weeks 5 through 12.
Irving came back in Week 13 and finished with six straight games.
But he wasn't right.
The ankle healed before the shoulder did. Per JoeBucsFan.com, Irving had offseason surgery to repair the latter.
After 1,122 rushing yards as a rookie at 5.4 yards per carry, Irving dropped to 588 yards on 3.4 yards per carry in 2025.
The injury explains a lot of that.
Although Irving was able to get in some work during OTAs, head coach Todd Bowles told reporters he expected the third-year man to be back later "in the summer or fall."
While multiple reporters and general manager Jason Licht suggest a summer return is more likely, the fact that Bowles mentioned this could carry into the fall is an eyebrow-raiser.
And it explains some changes to the backfield.
A New Look
White is in Washington. Sean Tucker returns on a restricted tender. According to Waldman, if the Buccaneers were confident in Irving's recovery and long-term availability, they wouldn't have added Gainwell and re-signed Tucker.
But more importantly, Gainwell joined the Bucs after an impressive season in Pittsburgh.
And the Bucs have a new offensive coordinator.
Incoming playcaller Zac Robinson came from Atlanta, where Tyler Allgeier mixed in behind Bijan Robinson -- to the chagrin of fantasy managers everywhere. In addition, Footballguy Jeff Bell recently pointed out that Robinson leans heavily on his backs in the passing game.
Atlanta's running backs drew a 23 percent target share last year, fourth in the NFL.
Irving and Gainwell are both excellent receivers.
In 2025, Irving averaged 14.0 fantasy points per game (RB18). Gainwell averaged 13.1 (RB21).
Irving is being drafted as RB20 in early Round 4. Gainwell is RB34 going in Round 8.
The market has Irving pegged. His ADP reflects last year's points-per-game finish and his 2026 Footballguys projection.
Still, during OTA and minicamp sessions -- with Irving limited coming off shoulder surgery -- Gainwell turned heads with his great hands. Quarterback Baker Mayfield highly praised his pass protection skills.
What's the Upside?
Waldman notes that at 5-9 and 192 pounds, Irving is small, and his body hasn't held up to playing big.
I'm not advocating drafting based on the possibility of an injury, but it's worth reviewing just how effective Gainwell was in a timeshare with Jaylen Warren last year.
After playing sparingly during the first four-and-a-half years of his career, Gainwell averaged 13.3 touches, 85 yards, and 17.8 fantasy points from Week 11 on last season.
Only six backs scored more points over that span.
Gainwell is shaping up to be a fantastic late-round draft target.
If Irving's shoulder lingers, Gainwell has an immediate path to a 1A/1B split or high-value third-down work in Tampa.
Harris was the FSWA's first-ever Football Writer of the Year back in 2004; he was inducted into that organization's Hall of Fame in 2013. During the season, catch Harris every weekday morning on the Footballguys Daily Update Podcast, your 10-minute daily dose of NFL news and fantasy analysis. You can also listen to Harris daily on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports Radio's The Football Diehards show and Sundays on the SXM Fantasy Football Pregame show on Sirius channel 87, and Saturday nights on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Sirius channel 88.
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